Open Front Porch Decorating Ideas

Joshua McHugh

Remember Allie Hamilton's wrap-around porch in The Notebook? We've had a thing for porches ever since we saw it, and while we may not have our very own Noah to build us one from scratch, we do have a few more ideas to share with you. In fact, these designer and landscaper–approved back and front porches would elevate an outdoor oasis even more than Nicholas Spark's imaginary one did. Comfortable, stylish swings? Check. Mood lighting? Check. Ability to stand up to Mother Nature? Check. Now just add a good book and refreshing cocktail, and you've got a getaway that's just a step outside your front door. Get inspired by the 45 picturesque porches below.

front porch with blue door frame

Read McKendree

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Frame Windows and Screens with Paint

Bella Mancini enlivened this screen door and its wood frame with Santa Clara by Benjamin Moore. The color feels right at home with cedar shake and hydrangeas, but has a note of distinct cheerfulness.

front porch with package closet

Victoria Pearson

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Build a Secure Closet for Packages

Between all the online orders and foot traffic, a secure spot for deliveries and accessories (like umbrellas) is more essential than ever. A delivery closet on the porch of our Whole Home Concept House 2018 even had a garment rack for dry cleaning.

porch with dresser

James McDonald

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Or Just Stash Them In a Dresser

An antique dresser on a porch is the perfect place to have delivery drivers stash packages. Nicola Harding treated this one like it's in a grand foyer, embellishing it with plants, artwork, and lighting.

front porch ideas

Karyn Millet

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Create Cover with a Small Awning

Mix-and-match tiles aren't just for your interiors—they add instant intrigue to a front porch. Here, Sharon Lee alternated patterns on the step risers for an unexpected dose of personality. A custom awning in Sunbrella fabric provides a hint of shade.

front porch with walkthrough breezeway

Paul Costello

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Consider a Breezeway

From the outside, this green breezeway—which doubles as a flower-arranging room and was designed by Rebecca Vizard—makes a strong first impression, and the garden flowers pop against the gravel and tile path leading to the front door. To pull this off in your own home, keep it ground level and opt for a partially covered walk-through space instead of an elevated porch.

green front porch

THOMAS LOOF

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Scatter Seating Areas

Setting up multiple sitting areas will help you accommodate more people while also ensuring you get more use out of the space. To spruce things up, consider painting the columns, ceiling, and balustrades a fun color. Designer Amanda Reynal chose a mossy green hue for this nature-inspired porch.

modern malibu home landscaping

Romanek Design Studio

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Optimize It With Lighting

If you want to be able to safely enjoy your backyard once the sun goes down, make sure you've optimized it with integrated lighting in the steps and sconces on the exterior of the home, as Romanek Design Studio did here. It'll also just make your life easier when coming and going.

white porch with swing bench and pots

Abney Morton

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Set Up an Herb Garden

Step up your style and cooking game by arranging a mini nursery or herb garden on the porch. Here, Abney Morton Interiors propped some pots of herbs up on a console table by the hanging swing.

modern home front porch

Stephen Karlisch

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Keep It Simple

This Texas home designed by Jean Liu strikes the balance between natural beauty and practicality, perfect for its urban environment. The key: Pavers that complement the home's exterior material with a few trees and planting beds. Then, there's a slim overhang for extra lighting creating a more decorative impression over the front porch.

front porch with spanish style home

Trevor Tondro

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Truck It Away

Madeline Stuart gives this SoCal home by architects Wallace Neff and John Byers a sense of place with agave plants flanking the entrance and blooming bougainvillea spilling over the wall. Though the front porch isn't visible from the street entrance, it still has plenty of curb appeal.

front door and porch on brooklyn brownstone

Eliza Carter

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Secure It With a Gate

Create the illusion of extra privacy (and an extra safety barrier for toddlers and pets) in a city home with an iron-wrought gate. They're a natural fit for Victorians and brownstones, like Eliza Carter's NYC home featured here.

screened in porch with pink pillows

Max Kim-Bee

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Screen It In

There are so many cozy window seats in this 1890s carriage house that it's hard for interior designer Lisa Tharp to keep track, and the screened porch is no exception. Overlooking the green New England countryside, it's a beautiful setting for a screened porch. Wherever your porch is, adding screens will keep the bugs out while still letting the breeze in so you can enjoy the best of both worlds.

front porch ideas

JESSIE PREZA

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Spotlight a Motif

Flank the stairs to your front porch with stone sculptures shaped like a motif that speaks to your family or locality. On his Jacksonville, Florida, front porch, designer Fitz Pullins chose these fun pineapple-shaped sculptures in a corresponding stone material so they both pop and blend in.

modern front porch

Romanek Design Studio

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Treat It Like a Mudroom

Secure some hooks and slide in a bench or a pair of chairs to let your beach and pool gear dry instead of dripping throughout the house. Think of it as an outdoor mudroom. Romanek Design Studio opted for casual, minimalist furniture and decor for an understated, stylish impression in this Malibu home.

outdoor living room porch with fireplace

VICTORIA PEARSON

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Add a Fireplace

If your porch is large enough, add a fireplace and television so it can function as an outdoor family or living room. Take a cue from this leafy open-air porch designed by Sherry Hart and Jennifer Jones Condon and built by Ladisic Fine Homes.

modern front door to home

Peti Lau

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Install Cameras

Install extra security, like a camera, but be sure to camouflage it into the surrounding environment. In this modern home by Peti Lau, the polished concrete flooring and wooden materials blend in with the surroundings and feel connected to the natural landscape, so you hardly even notice the little camera in the corner.

coral painted home with porch and lawn

THOMAS LOOF

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Go Island-Inspired

When Clos-ette founder Melanie Fowler hired friend (and House Beautiful Next Wave designer) Caroline Rafferty to make over her Palm Beach house, she brought one major piece of inspo: The famously chic Lyford Cay Club in the Bahamas, which Rafferty wove in through the house's pale-pink exterior and treillage-inspired woodwork. The lush surroundings were executed by landscape designer Fernando Wong.

white home with front porch

JESSIE PREZA

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Hang a Bird Feeder

Pavers lead to this elevated front porch on a property designed by Krystal Matthews. While the understated planters and sweet-swinging bench certainly help set the mood, the details framing the area help, too, like the bird feeder hanging from a tree.

modern outdoor dining area

AP Design House

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Weather-Proof It

Enjoy your outdoor space rain or shine with details that can stand up to the elements. AP Design House weatherproofed this porch by adding timeless and design-forward Bermuda shutters and galvanized steel corrugated panels overhead.

weather proof front porch

Jane Beiles

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Add Shutters

Another way to weather-proof? Add the appropriate shutters. Here, Charlotte Barnes opted for classic shutters with slat-like louvers on the windows as well as Bahama shutters that attach from the top of the opening between the columns and open like an awning. They'll protect your porch from heavy tropical wind and rain while the hardware and paint color can add some aesthetic perks.

urban porch design ideas

PHOTO: Tom Ferguson; DESIGN: Arent & Pyke

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Lay Graphic Floor Tiles

A graphic floor tile will personalize your front porch just enough. Take a cue from this design by Arent & Pyke, where a planter introduces greenery and an outdoor chair adds a dash of color. Clean, simple, and classic.

front lawn with porch

Joshua McHugh

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Keep It Open

If your front porch features a little alcove like this one designed by Raji RM, maintain the open airflow with a cutout or two that mimic the rest of the home's windows. Then add a bench to make it easier to get everything sorted as you come and go.

porch with dining table

THOMAS LOOF

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Let Nature Take Center Stage

Looking out at the sea ahead and draped in a canopy of tropical plants, this porch features minimal decor, allowing us to focus on the natural environment. Instead of a sitting area, there's a casual dining nook for al fresco meals.

back porch design ideas

PHOTO: Scott Hargis DESIGN: Regan Baker Design

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Make It Cozy

This back porch by Regan Baker Design is a perfect private spot to unwind in. To make it conducive to entertaining, bring in large outdoor floor cushions for additional floor seating.

porch dining area design

Brittany Ambridge

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Don't Be Afraid of Color

Celerie Kemble proves that color is nothing to be afraid of. If your porch is large enough for an outdoor dining area, add a splash of color with bright chair cushions. Then paint the overhang ceiling the same hue to make a statement.

small porch ideas

Nicole Franzen

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Consider Scale

You don't need to have a large porch to make it stand out. Choose a small round bistro table with rustic stools for a small eating nook, and ground the area with a round outdoor rug. For extra seating, consider a built-in bench. Paint it white so it blends in with the floors and creates the illusion of more open space, like in this porch at San Giorgio Hotel in Mykonos, Greece.

spanish style front porch design

Commune Design

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Make It Grand

Now this is how you make an entrance. In this Spanish-style Beverly Hills home designed by Commune Design, the front porch is inviting, comfortable, elaborate, and ornate all at once. The warm terracotta tiles, exposed beams, and wood stool ground the intricate wrought iron lighting and fuchsia accents.

porch landscaping ideas

PHOTO: Felix Forest; DESIGN: Arent & Pyke

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Frame the Door With Plants

Frame the door with plants and a gravel garden to give your porch a grand feeling—even if there isn't room for an outdoor dining nook or lounge zone. Take inspiration from this tranquil, minimalist landscaping situation from Arent & Pyke.

porch swing ideas

Studio Lifestyle

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Upgrade Your Porch Swings

There are porch swings and then there are these porch swings. For a dramatic effect, hang them from high ceilings, like in this space designed by Studio Lifestyle. Then add round poufs for extra seating and a contrasting shapes.

cabin front porch ideas

Regan Baker Design

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Blend in With Surroundings

This modern cabin home designed by Regan Baker Design manages to be both sleek and modern, cozy and rustic. The same mood is captured on the front porch, thanks to the wood stump side table and contemporary Adirondack chairs.